Palak Paneer Mac and Cheese – Indian Inspired Spinach Mac and Cheese
First of all I would like to wish all my friends in India a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi.. May the biggest and the best problem solver in the world shower you with a lot of love, just as sweet and delectable as his favorite MODAKS.. If ever there was a time for me to make these MODAKS it was right now. But me being me I just cant seem to do anything on time. So I am going to do something which is universally loved i.e. Mac & Cheese or Spinach Mac & Cheese to be more specific. This is an Indianized version of the dish. The pasta is cooked in a lusciously delightful spinach sauce and topped with cottage cheese.
Ganesh Festival
The best part of the holy month of Shravan comes at the very end in the form of the festival honoring the almighty Lord Ganesh (LAUGHS!!!). People like me think that the only reason to celebrate this festival is to eat all the sweets especially the MODAKS (LAUGHS HARD!!). A modak is a steamed rice flour dumpling stuffed with a sweet filling of shredded coconut and jaggery. It is a delicacy which is specifically made for this occasion just because it is Lord Ganesh’s favorite sweet.
I finally decided that this would be as good a time as any to actually make this speciality at home. However this easy looking recipe is actually very complicated. You need expert advice (HINT: Mom!!) before you even attempt to make it. Me being the over smart guy that I am went ahead and made it anyways. The result was to put it kindly, a predictable disaster (LAUGHS!!!). In the end I simply gave up and decided that a PLAN B was in order.
Not exactly Plan B but Plan Z
Fortunately for me Plan B was staring me right in the eye. Sitting on top of the fridge were boxes of pasta courtesy of our first trip to the wholesale retailer Costco. Due to lack of time store bought pasta is going to be my best option. However the trick was in giving an Indian touch to the sauce by adding a whole bunch of spices to it. The inspiration for the sauce is sitting inside my fridge, i.e. A HUGE bag of spinach. I knew I had the framework of the recipe in mind i.e. a creamy Spinach Mac & Cheese.
Blanching the Spinach
I was going to base this recipe on the classic Palak Paneer (Spinach & Cottage Cheese) which is a very popular dish in the northern part of India. The recipe starts with blanching the spinach in boiling water for a couple of minutes and instantly shocking it with cold water. This preserves the color of the spinach. Once cooked the spinach is then simply pureed into a smooth paste.
How to make Spinach Macaroni and Cheese
In addition I pan-roasted the onions and blended them as well. Once the two pastes are ready it was time to get cooking. Cook the ginger-garlic paste, onion paste and spinach paste in that order in a deep saucepan or a wok. In the meantime do not forget to cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.
Now it was time to build a flavor profile. So in went the tomato puree for a little tang, and heavy cream to give the sauce a rich, creamy texture. Last but certainly not the least are the dry spice powders; red chili, turmeric and coriander powders. In addition to these I have also used fenugreek leaves which gives the dish a unique, earthy flavor. Add a dash of garam masala and an absolutely divine sauce is ready for the pasta to dive into. So please do not keep the pasta waiting any more and let it dip into the pool of deliciousness. Top it with shredded cottage cheese and ENJOY!!!!
Notes for Indian Inspired Mac and Cheese
- Cook the macaroni al dente.
- Substitute frozen spinach for the fresh spinach if you like.
Variations for Mac and Cheese
- You can substitute spinach with chard or kale.
- You can substitute Paneer with a melty cheese for that creamy cheesy goodness. Choose a cheese like Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Gouda, Fontina, Parmesan.
- Instead of macaroni, try a different shaped pasta like farfalle, spaghetti or penne.
- For extra protein, add chicken, shrimp, or smoked salmon. Cook the meat separately and stir it into the pasta when you’re ready to serve.
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Other Spinach Recipes you may Enjoy !!
- Spinach and Cheese Rolls
- Palak Paneer Naan Bites
- Mattar Paneer Taco in a Spinach Tortilla
- 5-Ingredient Spinach & Yogurt Dip
- Baked Chicken Breast Stuffed with Spinach and Cheese
- Paneer Pizza
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Spinach Mac & Cheese
Ingredients
- ½ Packet Elbow Pasta
- ½ bag Spinach Leaves
- 150 gm Cottage Cheese/Paneer Grated
- 1 small Onion chopped
- ½ cup Tomato Puree
- ¼ cup Cream
- ½ inch Ginger chopped
- 3 Garlic Cloves chopped
- 2 tsp dried Fenugreek Leaves Optional
- 3 tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Turmeric
- 2 tsp Red Chili Powder
- 1½ tsp Garam Masala
- 2 tbsp Butter
- Salt as per taste
Instructions
- Blanch spinach leaves in boiling water for 2 minutes. Strain the leaves and put the leaves into cold water. Squeeze out the water and puree in a food processor until smooth.
- Heat oil in a pan and add garlic, ginger and saute till raw smell goes away. Add onion and saute till translucent. Once cool, puree in a food processor until smooth and keep aside.
- Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet and keep aside. Toss it with a little oil to prevent it from sticking.
- Add onion paste to melted butter in a large pan and saute for few minutes.
- Mix in the spinach puree, cream, tomato puree and sauté till the oil separates.
- Add coriander powder, turmeric, red chili powder, fenugreek leaves, garam masala and stir well.
- Add pasta and stir gently.
- Season with salt and grated cottage cheese. Serve hot.
My kids love paneer and pasta, but not spinach. Every time I make palak paneer, they only eat paneer and leave the paalak. I followed your recipe today and the plate was empty in minutes. Thanks for sharing this idea.
I am glad you and the kids liked it Gurleen.. I had no idea this recipe was going to make the kiddos eat their veggies.. 🙂
It’s hard to go wrong with mac and cheese, and I’m glad you ended up with this Plan Z! I don’t think I’ve ever had spinach mac and cheese, but this looks amazing, Rahul!
Thanks David.. I have always thought that some of the Indian curries would make excellent pasta sauces. SO this was my first attempt at making such a recipe..
Genius! Spinach Mac n’ cheese! I could eat this all day long! Thanks for sharing!
I couldn’t agree more Tonya since we did eat it all day long.. 🙂